Have Dazzle DVD recorder - but is it junk?
 

Hello,

I have the Dazzle DVD recorder which I purchased a couple years ago and am finally getting around to converting some Hi8 tapes. I'm using the Sony Handycam Vision that I used to record the tapes. The provided software is the "Instant DVD Recorder". I assume this will compress my video and from what I have been reading on your forums this is a bad idea. I would like to do some simple video editing with these files at some point. Is the Dazzle product something I can use to convert these to digital files with downloadable software or do I need to start over with a different conversion method? Of should I just pay you guys? I have about 30 Hi8 tapes, some partial, some full.

Thank you in advance!

I have one of those. And yes, it is junk. The device simply behaves badly.

With only 30 tapes, have you consider sending it out to a service? I ask because I'm the one here that mostly deal with Hi8, and enjoy working with the format. All you need is the right equipment, but given the cost of "the right equipment", paying others to do it can be the same or even cheaper. With Hi8, you need an external TBC to not have issues. Even the with-TBC cameras will drop frames.

The Dazzle is awful in the dropped frames department, and even worse with DV/MPEG compression via the included software. It's usually Pinnacle Studio, but sometimes worse junk is included.

So that's where you are with this. :o

Cost?
 

Yeah I agree with the service doing it.

I assume your pricing is somewhere on the site so I will take a look.

Thank you!

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